Why the Fuss Over Bobby Knight’s Cursing? He’s Done Much Worse

Letting profanity slip out in a recent broadcast isn't so bad when compared to his past actions. Photo: Reuters

Former Indiana University head coach Bobby Knight opened his mouth and got into a bit of trouble on Saturday.

During a segment on College Game Day, the ESPN broadcaster used the phrase, chicken s*** defense.

Later in the broadcast, ESPN's Rece Davis, and not Knight, apologized for the foul language.

But the fuss over the comment is nothing compared to the actions and comments that Knight has made over the years.

Knight has done a tremendous amount of good deeds over the years, such as his commitment to libraries, his high graduation rate for his players, his dedication to helping former players like Landon Turner who was paralyzed after a car accident, as well as the discipline he instilled in his players while leading them to three national championships.

But there's always been a focus on his temper as well as his mean-spirited rants which have led to inexcusable actions.

Here's a condensed look back at some of Knight's bad behavior (excluding the chair-toss incident):

In 1979, Knight was convicted of hitting a policeman in Puerto Rico.

After Indiana defeated LSU in the Final Four in 1981, he allegedly shoved an LSU fan into a garbage can.

During an NBC interview with Connie Chung in 1988, Knight made a comment that got him in a lot of hot water: I think that if rape is inevitable, relax and enjoy it. Knight later said the moment after he made the remark, he asked for it to be stricken. But the damage was done.

Then there was 1999 -- a scandal-laden year for Knight. He fires an assistant coach and throws him out of a chair after hearing him critique the program. In a separate incident, a man at a restaurant overheard Knight make racist comments, and an alleged battery incident occurs. Then the capper: Knight accidentally shoots his friend in the back during a hunting trip. (His friend was only wounded.)

The following year, star guard Neil Reed claims that Knight choked him, and then a video tape appears of the incident, but it's unclear how harmful the choke was.

Then the flood gates open. Knight is dismissed from Indiana University after reports he attacked the school's information director and verbally abused and threw a vase at a staff assistant, but the final straw was him grabbing a student by the arm for calling him by his last name.

At Texas Tech, Knight went on two verbal tirades - one involving the school chancellor at a grocery store.